Street-traffic system



H. W. GRAVES STREET TRAFFIosYsTEM Filed Aug. 25., 1924.

Ill

June 23, 1925.

y Patented ill'm'e 23, 1925.

UNITED STATES HENRY w. Gnavns, or

1,543;080 PATENT OFFICE.

S'IBEET-TRAFHG srs rnm.

Application filed August 25, 1924. Serial No. 733,904.

* Illinois, have invented certain newand useful ImprovementstinaStreet-Traflic System andI do hereby declare the following tobe 31 5 111, clear and exact description of the invention, such as will enable Others make and usethe same;

- skilled in the art to which appertains to My invention relates to driveway 'constructions for expediting traflic and reducinga'ccide'ntjslat street intersections, and. in general, aimsto providefa relatively simple and inexpensive constructionwhich will not require either of these 'inters'ectingstreets to'be depressed, which will facilitate the making of right hand turns at the street intersection while keepingpedestrians .en

tirely out of the path of vehicles making such facilitated right-hand turns, and which will deter the making of. left-hand" turns. In its preferred embod-iments, :italso aims to provide a construction for this purpose which will particularly expedite thethrough movement of automobiles along one of the intersecting streets, which will entirely prevent the making of left-hand turns close to 'the curbingb'y automobiles driving along either street, which will inake 'itjsafe; for passengers to reach streetcars on -either Street from any corner .ofthe'. intersection,

and which' will readily lend'itself for-Iuse in connection with subways for der either or both of the intersecting streets. I In my copending application'No. 719,241,.

filed June 11, 1924,, now Patent" 1,5 15,251, issued Nov. 11, 1924, on a street-trafiic system, I have disclosed a] street crossing construction which entirely eliminates grade" crossin s for both the street cars and the l automo iles on the intersecting streets, and one which also will ermit pedestrians to cross both streets without'encountering ve hicles of any kind and have claimed certain features of the same. For such purposes,

my saidapplicationdisclosed a street crossing construction in secting streets dipped under the other and which permitted right-hand turnsfor automobiles fromthree of the streetsand a left hand turn from one street to the other only. While the arrangement thus disclosed is highly desirable as a means of entirely encountered in bot pedestrians unwhich one of the intereliminating the risk of-having pedestrians cincaao, ILLINOIS, 'AssrGNo-n or ONE-HALF 'ro JOHN F. Y eoonn, or cmcaao, ILLINOIS.

run overby vehicles of any kind, its use involves a relatively high cost owing to the. needed depressing of one of the streets, which depressing is rendered all the more extensive by the required moving of the water, sewer, gas, electric light and tele-' phone wires at the street intersection. I For this reason, the cost of'the construction disclosed in my said copending application may be objectionableexcept at street "corners where an -unusuall 'heavjy vehicle traflic is directions.

qThe construction'here presented aims to accomplish many of the" same objects at a for convenient through traffic on the part of automobiles in both directions alongone of the streets, thereby particularly lending itself for use at the intersections "of busy through streets with cross-streets which have a relatively "smaller amount of traflic on considerabl lower cost" and also provides them. Furthermore, while my here presented construction doesnot provide special facilities for makin any left-hand turns, it does provide for r ght-hand turns; by ve-" hicles; and in its highest development, my

' invention provides for the making of right- ;hand turns at-every one bf'thefour corners of the intersection, thereby preventing apes: sibleconfusion on the part of drivers-(and particularly on the art of strangers in the city) and also con orming. to the general trend towards eliminatingleft-hand turns. It also lends itself more readily to the .convenience of thosewho wish toreach, or to alight from, street cars at anyone of: the four corners of further and also more'detailed objects will appear from the following specification and from the accompanying drawings, in which- Fig. l'isa perspective view of astreet intersection, showing an embodiment of my invention. i

Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic view showing the installationof my crossing s stem in a portion of a city-in which ve ic e traflie is particularly heavy on a certain through street.., v v v I Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic plan view show ing a simplified embodiment of my invention designed for use at intersections where vehicles are not'expected to turn. into the the intersection. Still roadways, and

shows my street crossing system as applied to the intersection of two streets in which the street 1 is a through street having a relatively heavy trafiic of vehicles on it, while the trafic on the intersecting street 2 is relatively smaller. To meet the conditions at such a street crossin I preferably provide a pair of partly inclined and partly elevated through driveways at 0 posite sides of the through street 1 and pre erably adjacent to the curbs, and also provide two pairs of inclined roadways for respectively connecting each of the aforesaid through driveways with the cross street 2.

Thus, Fig. 1 shows an inclined driveway 3 leading upwardly from the left-hand side of the through street 1 to an elevated driveway & which extends at suificient height above the cross street 2 to permit the passage of street cars, moving vans and other tall vehicles under it. It also shows an inclined roadway 5 leading downwardl from the opposite end of the elevated driveway 4, the portions 3, 4, and 5 being all desirably close to the outer edge of the sidewalk 6 on that side or the street. At the opposite side of-thet-hr'ough street'l, I likewise provide an upwardly inclined driveway 7 leading. to an eleva'tedroadway 8 from which a downward incline 9 leads to the level of the street. I 'also' provide inclines 10 and 11 leading upwardly from the cross street 2 and adjacent to diagonally opposite corners of the intersection'respectively to the two elevatedrovide downward inclines 12 and 13 leading from these same roadways- 1 To prevent vehicles from making lefthand turns at the junctures of each of'these elevated roadways with the inclines 10 to 13 inclusive, I provide guards directed at an acute angle towards the direction in which vehicles travel along each of the said through roadways which are disposed respectively along the two sides of the through street 1. For example, since the incline 7 in Fig.1 is disposed at the right-hand of the through street 1, this will be traversed mainly by 'automobles traveling up this incline and continuingin the direction of the arrow 1430f that figure. Automobiles traveling up the same incline 7. can also make a right- 'hand tumdownjthe incline 13 as shown-by the. arrow 15,.and the same holds true at the diagonally opposite corner where the arrow 16- shows how an automobile driving u the incline 3 can make a right-hand turn own the incline 12 to the cross street instead of continuing straight on over the crossover 4 to the wnward incline 5. So also, an automobile driving up the incline 10 can make aright-hand turn down the incline/ 5 and on travelling up the incline 11, can turn to the right down the incline 9. If the inclines 10'and 11 were connected to the corresponding elevated crossovers by wide or even right-angled junctures, an inexperi-' enced or wreckless driver might be tempted to make a left-hand turn after driving up one of these inclines. To prevent this, I curve the guards 17 and 18 so as to space these junctures more widely than the inclines, thereby compelling the making of a right hand turn by the vehicles which have driven up inclines 10 and 11 respectively.

To avoid interfering with the free movement of pedestrians along both streets, I desirably provide spaced pillars 19 as portions of the supports for my roadway system, so that pedestrians along any of the sidewalks at the street intersection can pass freely under the roadways.

With the construction thus disclosed, it will be evident from Fig. 1 that the long and straight portions of my driveways'will afford a ready through passage along both sides of the through street entirely out of the path of all pedestrians and also o'ut of the path of all vehicles traversing thecross street. If this through street is emplo ed also for street cars, these cars can rea ily be reached by the pedestrians through the archways adjacent to the sidewalks, and with streets ofeven average widths, strips 20 between each car track and the adjacent incline can also be used for the loadin and unloading of street car-passenger's. y arrangement therefore provides greatly increased safety for street car passengers, since all automobiles on the through street will use the elevated roadway, so that the street car passengers do not have to be on the guard for them. Eurthermore, if trucks and other vehicles are also obliged by the local city regulations to use these elevated road portions, the movement ofthe street cars can be greatly expedited, thereb facilitating the handling of crowds whic is desirable at all times and which is particularly needed during rush hours. o

On the'crossstreet, the inclines wouldbe used only for the automobiles or other vehicles desiring to make right-hand turns, while vehicles wishi to cross the through streetwould have to eepbetween the corresponding inclined roadwa s. However, the archways under the inclines will also afford protection for those who are waiting for, or alighting from, street cars traversing the cross-street also. All of the arch- .wa s will also afiord a highly desirable she ter from the rain' for such waiting street.

car passengers, as they can wait underthe a'rchways and can reach the safety strips 20 -without danger wheneverthe cars approach.

1 ing of'right-hand turns any ofthe ve-' that this will never interfere with'the mak- I hicles entirely out of the .path lof pedestrians crossing the streets or waiting. ior'street cars.

' Likewise, by having these ihrough driveways extend in thesame direction at a number of consecutive intersect ons with the same street, such as the street 1 of Fig, 2',

a long and straight; thrpugh drive is secured on this street,- thereby g'reatly facilitating the trafiic along such'a through street. Sov also, by having the throughdri ves disposed ina transverse direction at adjacent inter- .sections of the cross streets, as shown in Fig.

quently, my system can easily be adapted to i the traflicconditions in any husypart of :1.

However,' while' Fig. 1 illustrates the use of. my systemat every street intersection in a portion of a city and'havesh'o'wn a ,d'esir able arrangement of columns for supporting; I I

ofthe cross-street for connecting the opportions of my driveways, I do not wish to be limited tothese or other details of the construction and arrangement thus disclosed, it bein obvious that manyjvariation's might be ma e w-ithout'dep'arting either .from' the spirit of my invention or from the appended streets, hence I may simplify and cheapen -the..construction at the other street-inter sections,as illustrated for example in Fig.

3.' This shows the turnouts-omitted at the -two diagonally oppositecorners from which right-hand turns would made" into the through street 1 from fth e cross street C, while still facilitating ihoth the through travel along the through street and 'the-mak ing of ri ht-hand turns-from this through street in th directions? I 1. I claim as my. invention :I- Y

1..'In a street crossing, two elevated roadways extending at oppositesides of one street across the cross-street, and four pairs of inclined driveways respectively connectedto the ends of the said elevated roadways, the;

driveways of each pair leading respectively to the two streets.

2. In a street crossing, four pairs of inclined driveways disposed respectively ad-v jacent to the four corners of'the crossing with each pair disposed for afiording a right-- is I hand turn at aheight permitting pedestrians to pass under the same, and two elevated roadways extending respectively along opposite sides of one of t e streets connecting the juncture of one pairof .driv ways with" the juncture of another pair so and each and a pair of nclined driveways connecting 'th'e said medial portion respectively with the two intersecting streets, the parts of each medial portion outside the building lines adjacent theretobeing sufiiciently elevated to permit the free passage of pedestrians under the same.

4. A street crossing construction for facilitating traflic along a thro'ugh street at its intersection with a cross-street, comprising I two elevated roadways disposed above the cross-street and respectively at opposite sides of'the-through street, two pairs of inclined driveways respectively disposed in continuation of the said elevated roadways and connecting the latter with the through street,

and two pairs of transverse inclined drive ways respectively disposed at'opposite sides posite-side portions of the latter with the elevated roadways. I

' 5;A street crossing construction for facilitating traflic along a through 'streetat its intersection with a cross-street, comprising two elevated roadways-disposed above the cross-street and" respectivelyv at opposite.. sides of the through street, t' WOjv pairs of inclined driveways respectively disposedways and connecting? the-latter with" the through street, and two pairs oftransverseinclined driveways respectively disposed at opposite side's of the crossestreet'ior connecting the fopposite side ortions of; the latter with the-elevated 'roa Ways'adj'acent to the junctures of the elevated roadways with the first named inclined driveways,".the 'junctures being shaped to prevent the making of left-hand 'turns'irom the. inclined driveways.to the elevated roadway. I

5 6. A drivewa construction fo'ifl'expedit- 1ng vehicle traflic-at the intersection of two streets, comprising four driveways respectively disposed at the four corners of the intersectiomeach of the said driveways comprising a medial curved portion elevated sufliciently topermit pedestrians to passv under the same, and a pair of inclines 're- Y spectively connecting the said medial 'portions; and two elevated, roadways extendmg over one street and.'e ach connectin the medial rtions of two of the said ways; t ev'unctures of each: elevated ,road-' way with t e 'medial driveway 'portionspon nected by it being spaced further apart than V the inclines leading to the-said medial drive way portions so as to defer-the mfl {0f the elevated roadways;

in continuationof the said elevated road- 100 Y 7. A crossing construction for expediting vehicle traific at the intersection of two streets, comprising a pair of through driveways extending respectively alon the opposite sides of one street; each 0 the said driveways comprising an elevated roadway extending across the other street; and a pair of inclines disposed in substantially straight extension of the elevated roadway and connecting the latter with the first named street at points spaced from the said other street; and Ya pair of inclined roadways leading downward respectively from the two elevated roadways to the said other street and each adjoined to the corresponding elevated roadway at an acute angle, the said inclined roadways being respectively at diagonally opposite corners of the street intersection and each disposed for cooperating with one incline of the adjacent driveway for affording a right-hand turn from the first named street to the said other street. I

8. A crossing construction for expediting vehicle traffic at the intersection of two streets, comprising a pair of through driveways extending respectively along the 0pposite sidesof one street; each of the said driveways comprising an elevated roadway extending across the other street; and a pair of inclines disposed in substantially straight extension of the elevated roadway and connecting the latter with the first named street at points spaced from the said other street; a pair of inclines extending respectively along opposite sides of the said other street and connecting the latter with one of the elevated roadways by curves directed away from the middle of the said other streets so as to afiord acute angled junctures with the elevated roadway, the said curves bein relatively narrow so as to cooperate wit the acute angle of the juncture in effectively preventing the. makingof left hand turns at either of the said junctures.

9. A street crossing construction, including two turn-out drives respectively adjacent to the diagonally opposite corners of the street intersection; each of the said drives comprising acurved medial portion having parts thereof extending over the street portions alining with the adjacent sidewalks so as to permit pedestrians to pass freely under these parts, and two inclines respectively connecting the ends of the said medial portions with the two streets.

Signed at Chicago, Illinois, August 20th, 1924.

HENRY W. GRAVES. 

